According to the wealthy readers of Elite Traveler, described as “ultra high net worth consumers,” the world’s best dining destination is found in Larrabetzu, Spain, where chef Eneko Atxa works his culinary sorcery to create inventive, modern Basque cuisine at Azurmendi.
The new title will add to the restaurant’s decorated garland of achievements, which also includes three Michelin stars.
Overall, the list of the top 100 restaurants is dominated by the US, which takes up a quarter of the ranking, including 10 for New York alone.
After the US, France boasts 18 restaurants in total, including eight Parisian addresses.
Rounding out the culinary capitals are San Francisco with five restaurants, and London, Hong Kong, Chicago and Tokyo, with three addresses each.
The sixth edition of the awards also bestowed a lifetime achievement award on chef Joel Robuchon and named Italy’s Massimo Bottura chef of the year.
San Francisco-based French chef Dominique Crenn was named rising star chef of the year.
Elite Traveler is the latest ranking aimed at classifying the best dining destinations around the world. Last month the World’s 50 Best Restaurants pronounced New York’s Eleven Madison Park the top of its kind, which placed third with readers of Elite Traveler.